


the most wonderful girl

by needchocolatenow



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-21
Updated: 2017-04-21
Packaged: 2018-10-22 02:28:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10687914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/needchocolatenow/pseuds/needchocolatenow
Summary: A mission goes awry and Jaime takes Cassie to the hospital.--Commission for @wombatking on tumblr.





	the most wonderful girl

**Author's Note:**

  * For [milleniumrex](https://archiveofourown.org/users/milleniumrex/gifts).



Jaime was dodging out of the way of multiple laser beams when a streak of yellow flew under him, neatly incapacitating his metallic opponent.

“Why is it always robots?” Cassie grunted as she literally picked up a thousand pound killer machine and upended it on its head. “Why do they always have to have lasers?” She punched the robot in multiple succession, denting the metal inward until all its innards became junk. It twitched uselessly, broken. 

“Because nobody likes wasting money more than Lex Luthor?” Bart joked. Wherever he was, Jaime didn’t see him, but he couldn’t have been that far away. The commlinks didn’t have too wide a range. 

“Thanks for the save, Wonder Girl,” Jamie called out as he refocused on the turrets that had just come to life, springing out of the heavily forested area that camouflage them. Whatever this storage place held, Luthor clearly didn’t want anyone discovering what was inside, which, in Jaime’s opinion, made it all the more suspicious. 

“Impulse. Focus. Hurry up and open the door,” Robin snapped over the comms. 

“You can’t hack it?” 

“It’s a deadbolt on the other side, now hurry up!” 

The plan had been so simple, up until it was not simple and Jaime wondered why did plans with the Team always go awry. Always. Sometimes, a successful mission just meant getting home in one piece and enduring Nightwing’s Look of Disappointment at the debrief. 

_ It means your teammates are all inadequate, _ the Scarab hissed.  _ We can annihilate-- _

“Please, not now,” Jaime groaned as he blasted away the legs of a rogue robot that Cassie hadn’t pulverized to death.

_ I’m helping, _ the Scarab muttered, disgruntled, before quieting.

All they had to do was break into Luthor’s super secret, super secure storage space in the middle of a deadly forest situated on an abandoned island several miles off the East coast because Batman heard from Superman who heard from someone else that Luthor was hiding something big in the Atlantic. No biggie; Jaime was used to these kinds of operations, as was the rest of the Team. What no one expected were the legion of killer robots and military-like defence of the place. 

Or maybe it was expected, since Nightwing got him and Cassie to come along as backup to the infiltration team. 

“Duck!” 

Jaime dropped instinctively, just as more lasers filled the space he had just been flying in. 

“Thanks,” he called out again to Cassie as he went and dispatched the turrets. 

“You’re welcome,” Cassie replied cheerily, ripping out her own section of turrets from the ground. After a few tense moments, what was left was mangled pieces of smoking metal and the charred remains of innocent flora. An uprooted tree protruded sadly into the messy clearing that led into Luthor’s secret storage. 

“You’ve gotten stronger,” he observed. 

“You noticed?” she grinned and flexed. “I’ve been working out.” 

Jaime laughed, feeling a heavy heat creep up from his neck, to his cheeks, and to the tip of his ears. Thank goodness he had a mask that covered his face because he wasn’t sure he’d be able to explain the blush away. Maybe he’d blame it on the battle, adrenaline and all that.

_ Your body temperature is rising beyond the norm, _ said the Scarab.  _ In response to that-- _

“Nope! No, no, no,” Jaime said and if he sounded just a little be strangled, well. 

“Uh-oh,” said Karen, her voice interrupted by static over the comms. “Wonder Girl, Blue Beetle, evacuate!” 

_ It’s nothing to worry about, I’ve calculated that we’ll survive with minimal damage, _ the Scarab said, almost bored. 

“What are you talking about?!” 

The world went still for a moment as all sound seem to be sucked away and Jaime was knocked out of the sky by an explosive blast. He heard a yell from somewhere to his left and when he blinked and managed to right himself, he found that the front of the storage compound had been blown to smithereens, bits of metal and shrapnel embedded in the ground and in nearby trees. 

“Cassie!” 

Silence. 

There was no chatter from the infiltration team so the comms were down; it was impossible to get Bart to shut up so it wasn’t the fact that no one was talking. They’ll be fine, Jaime thought wildly; this was Robin and Impulse and Bumblebee, they’ve always survived. They were survivors. 

Wonder Girl was a survivor too. 

Jaime could feel his heart jumping into his throat as he did a scan for life signs, praying that she was still alive. The Team and the Justice League didn’t need anymore memorials for their fallen. 

There was a groan and underneath a pile of rubble, something shifted. 

Jaime was there in an instant, pulling sheets of metal off of Cassie, who was laying far too prone for his liking. 

“Cassie?” 

She opened her eyes--thank  _ heaven _ \--and said: “I’m swear I’ll hit it back.” 

Jaime laughed, unable to hide his relief as he pulled her out of the rest of the rubble. She inhaled, sharp, as if in pain. 

“Maybe I’ll hit it back later,” she said, grimacing and blinking back what looked like tears as she gripped onto his arm for balance. “What happened to the rest of the team?” 

Jaime did a quick scan into the storage facility for any life forms and found, to his surprise, not just his teammates, but several other unaccounted signatures within the building. They hadn’t been there earlier, which meant that whoever the new people were, teleported there. 

“Still alive,” he answered. “I’m calling Nightwing. And we need to get you to a hospital.”

“I’m fine,” Cassie insisted. She was very obviously favoring her leg and when she noticed Jaime watching, she floated in place, wobbling like a kite in an unfavorable breeze. 

“You are not fine.” 

They both looked up at the new voice to find M’gann floating above them, her cape waving in the breeze. Next to her was Sphere and Conner, who was surveying the blast site around them with a deep frown. 

“Have you been watching us the whole time?” Cassie asked. 

“Robin called us about half an hour ago,” M’gann said. “The rest of the League is on their way. You should take her to a hospital, Blue Beetle.” 

“I’m fine!” Cassie insisted again. 

“Do you really want to face a disappointed Nightwing? What about a disappointed Wonder Woman?” That was Conner, pulling all the cheap shots. 

Cassie made a face. “Alright, I’m going,” she said, defeated and turned to Jaime. “Come on, the least you can do is carry me.”

 

* * *

 

Jaime didn’t like hospitals, but it seemed that Cassie liked them even less. 

He had personally flown her off the island, dodged around what was possibly the whole Justice League on route to help the Team, and safely deposited her with the on-call doctor that Batman held on retainer for situations like this.

“I’m fine,” Cassie said for the umpteenth time, stubborn to the last minute even when the doctor was saying that she was going to need an x-ray. 

“Stay still and don’t move,” the doctor said as she dumped the heavy protective apron over Cassie’s body, leaving just her legs exposed. 

“I thought you’re a doctor, aren’t you supposed to be nice?”

“Not when my patients are uncooperative,” the doctor replied. “Stop fidgeting.” 

As the doctor left to go into the other room, Jaime went to Cassie’s side by the bed. “I’m here for you,” he said, offering her his hand. He was still in the Blue Beetle armor because otherwise, he was certain the doctor was going to kick him out of the room. Or maybe force him to wear one of those aprons that Cassie had on.

Cassie stared at his hand for a moment before reaching out to tentatively take it. “Thanks,” she said, squeezing. 

She was going to crush his fingers if they ever held hands outside of the armor, but Jaime was okay with that. 

There was the distinct buzz of the x-ray machine going on and off for a few moments before it stopped completely. Jaime could hear the distinctive steps of the doctor’s shoes on the linoleum outside, making a beeline for them. 

“Do you think...anything is broken?” 

Cassie wasn’t looking at him, but at her legs. She winced as she wiggled her toes. 

It didn’t look like anything was broken to Jaime, but without a detailed scan, he wouldn’t know. That was what the x-ray was for. That was why they were here at the hospital. 

He didn’t want to give her any false hope and with his free hand, he patted her arm. “You’re strong,” he said. “You’ll get through this.” 

The door opened and the doctor came back in, clipboard in hand. She glanced at the two of them for a brief moment, but made no comment, and removed the apron from Cassie, hanging it back on its hanger. 

“It’s not your leg, but your foot,” she said, pulling up the x-ray scans for them to see. “The feet are very delicate areas and hold a large number of bones. You didn’t break anything, but you’ve got fractures from your third through fifth metatarsals. I’m afraid you’ll be out of commission for eight to ten weeks.” When she saw that Cassie was going for a rebuttal, she continued: “I am being generous with the estimate, Wonder Girl. I’d tell anyone else they’d be expecting ten to twelve weeks for recovery.” 

Cassie’s mouth shut with an audible click. 

The doctor sighed. 

“If you are good about keeping off your foot, I might recommend to the Justice League that you be reinstated to active duty early.” 

“How early will that be?” Jaime asked and he was just as surprised as Cassie that he was the one to speak. 

“Six weeks,  _ if _ she’s good,” the doctor said emphasizing the ‘if’ with force. “Now, if you’d help move her to the wheelchair, Blue Beetle, it’s time to put her cast on.”

 

* * *

 

“Eight to ten weeks,” Cassie moaned, throwing her crutches to the side and then herself on the couch. They were in one of the Watchtower’s common rooms (plural, Jaime thought as he remembered the single one that had been housed in Mount Justice), waiting to be debriefed. Only a few auxiliary members of the League was around and Jaime wondered if the big guns were still dealing with Luthor’s not-so-secret storage facility--it must have been hours by now. He felt a bit guilty not being there when it seemed like an all hands on deck scenario, but Plastic Man, who was on Watchtower duty, had greeted them with a smile and told them to get some rest. 

“Six weeks at the earliest,” Jaime reminded her as he rearranged her crutches to lean against the wall. 

“Eurgh,” said Cassie, thumping her head against the cushions. 

He took a seat on the couch opposite her, willing the armor away so it was no longer the Blue Beetle that was with her, but himself, Jaime Reyes. 

There was an odd moment of silence before it was broken by Cassie. She was giggling as she looked at him.

“What?” Jaime asked, feeling just a tad self conscious. 

“Helmet hair,” she explained, sitting up. She got up, as if to walk over to him, and immediately sat back down with a grimace. She had evidently forgot that her foot was still injured, even though she had quite literally just been talking about it a few moments ago. 

“Do you need some painkillers?” Jaime asked. 

The doctor had given Jaime a piece of paper to take to the pharmacy and when he handed it over to the pharmacist on duty, he had scratched his head. 

“You hero-types,” the pharmacist said, but gave Jaime the little pills anyway. “These are very high concentrations so be sure that whomever is taking them do so specifically according to the instructions on the label. Understood?” 

It didn’t matter that Jaime was still Blue Beetle at that point, the pharmacist made sure that he knew exactly how much to give her and how often. 

Which in hindsight had been a brilliant move on the pharmacist’s part because Cassie made a grabbing motion for the painkillers and didn’t bother to count out how many it was that she was supposed to take. 

“No,” Jaime said, taking the little bottle away from her before she took them all and died a terrible, terrible death from overdose. “These were made with your physiology in mind. You can have two.” 

“Meanie,” she said, but there was no heat behind her words. 

_ Just let her take as many as she wants, _ the Scarab whispered. 

Jaime did his best to reach over his shoulder to whack at the Scarab attached to his spine. It did little good and he just ended up hitting himself. 

“Is the Scarab talking to you?” Cassie asked. “What’s it saying?”

_ Giving you great advice, _ the Scarab said. 

“Hoping that you get better soon,” Jaime lied. 

_ How dare you, Jaime Reyes. _

“That’s sweet,” Cassie said, and if she bought it, Jaime didn’t know. She got up again, this time wary of her injured foot, and hopped over to the couch Jaime was on, sitting down with care. 

It was almost like when they first met, when Cassie was trying to recruit him into the Team all those years ago. She had been so open, so honest about her fears and vulnerabilities, and now, though she remained much the same, she was also a little different too. They both were; a little bit older, a little bit wiser. 

“Is this the first time you’ve been injured?” Jaime asked. 

Cassie snorted. “I’ve had worse,” she said and Jaime could believe that. 

She fidgeted, drumming her fingers on top of her knees, eyes locked on the cast on her foot. It was huge and white, completely disproportionate to her size, though Jaime figured it was to withstand breaking from her superhuman strength. 

“I don’t like being sidelined,” she said. “I like being in the action. I like...I like the fighting. I’m good at it, you know?” 

Yeah, he did know. She was one of the powerhouses of the Team for obvious reasons and why Nightwing always assigned her on missions that required a physical player. 

“Everyone gets injured,” Jaime reasoned. “Not even Superman’s invulnerable.” 

“Bet he never broke his foot before,” she muttered. 

“There’s a high chance that he hasn’t,” Jaime agreed. “But there’s always a first.”

“Imagine the Man of Steel walking around with a cast,” said Cassie and she promptly dissolved into a fit of giggles. 

Jaime cracked a smile and she leaned a bit closer to him, sighing. “I’m not sure what I’ll do in the meantime. All this downtime,” she admitted. “It’s so weird.” 

What would he do if he was injured? Jaime wasn’t sure either; he’d probably just end up hanging around his house, go to school, do his normal, everyday life stuff. Like from before. Normal.

_ I wouldn’t let us get injured, _ the Scarab groused. 

Jaime ignored it.

“Why don’t we go somewhere,” Jaime found himself saying, his mouth suddenly acting on its own like it wasn’t connected to his brain. “Just the two of us. Like, on a date?” His voice was slowly, but surely going higher in pitch as he continued, realizing that Cassie was giving him an odd look. She was usually very expressive, wearing her heart on her sleeve for everyone to see, but this was an expression that he had never seen before. 

He hoped she’d say yes. 

For the love of all that was good and righteous, he prayed that she wasn’t going to turn him down, but the longer the silence went on, the more sweat continued to bead on his body and the redder he felt his face was becoming. 

“Aww,” said Cassie finally, breaking out into a grin. “Of course I would! I’d love to!” 

“You would?” Jaime was feeling lightheaded, but that might be because of the heart palpitations he had been experiencing. 

“I made you carry me all the way to the hospital when I could have flew there myself,” she said pointedly. “I let you hold my hand during the x-ray. If I had to hint anymore, I’d probably just throw a bus in your face.” 

“Please don’t throw a bus in my face,” Jaime said. He knew she was joking. Hopefully.

“Yeah, I won’t. I like your face,” she said and Jaime was certain his face was really going to be a permanent shade of scarlet at this point. 

“Thanks,” he said, unsure of what to say to that. It wasn’t often someone complimented him like that and somehow, Cassie was making him feel like his insides were goo. It wasn’t always like this, was it? “I like your face too.” 

She giggled again and then dropped her foot that was in a cast into his lap. 

“Doing stuff like that is probably what is going to deter the healing process of your leg,” he said, shifting around so it wasn’t in an awkward position. 

“I’ll be fine,” she said, leaning back on the couch’s armrest. She was smiling, though she had a considering look in her eyes. “Want to be the first one to sign my cast?”

She handed him a felt tipped marker, on which was printed ‘JUSTICE LEAGUE’ in a bold, yellow font. It was a tacky marker and Jaime had no idea where she grabbed that from, but he assumed from somewhere on the Watchtower when he wasn’t looking. Probably from the desk Plastic Man was behind when they entered. 

The League’s paraphernalia was a little embarrassing, if Jaime was honest. 

He took the marker from her, unsure of what he wanted to write. Of course he wanted to sign her cast, but all of a sudden, it became a monumental task. 

What was he going to write? How should he sign it? Would she disapprove if he wrote ‘love Jaime’? 

“It’s ok,” Cassie said with a laugh. “You don’t have to freak out over it. You can just write your name.” 

_ When did you become so soft and doughy, _ the Scarab sneered.  _ Making us weak. _

“Quiet, you,” Jaime whispered under his breath. 

He uncapped the pen and inhaled, holding it as he brought the tip of it down onto Cassie’s cast. 

_ To the most Wonderful Girl _ , he wrote,  _ I’ll miss watching you kick ass. Looking forward to your full recovery. _ Below it, he drew a little doodle of the Scarab, just because he could. The Scarab’s displeasure at that vibrated through the back of his skull, but Jaime easily ignored it. 

He returned the pen back to Cassie, who took it without a word, shoving it back into her pocket. She touched the edge of his message, the smile on her lips never waning. “Thank you,” she said, a levity in her voice that Jaime very rarely heard. 

He had heard it long ago, when she recruited him to the Team. 

How long ago had that been? Time flew by all too quick. 

Jaime exhaled, slow, and reached over, taking Cassie’s hand in his. She blinked, taken by surprise by the action, though she didn’t pull away. She held on, instead, her grip tightening over his fingers, but careful of her strength. Her eyes shone bright as she came closer still.

“You’re welcome,” he answered, pulling her in for a kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> A commission for wombatking/milleniumrex. Thank you so much for this, working on it has been great fun!


End file.
